Among the Ducklings (13 page)

“How can
pasta be mean?” Phil asked.

“Have you
ever seen a jalapeno spaghetti sauce?” Isabel teased.

“Nope.
That sounds scary.”

“Well,
prepare
yourself
to be very afraid tomorrow,” Isabel
said with a laugh.

For the
next hour, Isabel and Phil talked about everything and nothing, laughing and
teasing each other. It was as if time stood still, as if Isabel was not
engaged.
 
As she hung up the phone,
Isabel noticed the engagement ring around her finger. She regretted having
accepted Richard's marriage proposal. She knew it was childish to feel this
way. She didn’t know at that time that she wasn’t in love with Richard.
 
All she knew now was that she was an engaged
woman, and the love that she and Phil felt for each other could not make the
ring disappear.

Chapter
Nine

When Phil’s
secretary knocked on the front door of Stacy's rented beachfront penthouse in
Miami Beach, Stacy didn't come to the door.
 
Instead, Myra heard Stacy's voice telling her to enter. When she
entered, she was amazed to see how beautiful the penthouse was.
 
It had high ceilings and was richly
decorated, with views of the Atlantic Ocean in every room.
  
She gave Stacy a hug and said, “It is nice
to see you again, Stacy. You haven't changed a bit.”

“It's nice
to be seen,” Stacy replied.

Myra looked
a lot chubbier than before.
You
don't get to look like me by eating cheap hamburgers
, Stacy thought. But
Stacy was grateful that Myra had agreed to be her personal secretary during her
stay in Miami.
 
Willingly or unwillingly,
Myra was going to help her with Phil.
 
Stacy knew that Myra would tell Phil about everything that they would be
doing or saying.
 
That's what good
secretaries do: Protect the boss. Stacy expected that. That was part her plan
too. Except for not seeing Isabel by the lake, the script was developing
perfectly.

##

Phil lived
in a two-story four bedroom house located west of Baptist Memorial
Hospital.
 
The house was situated at the
end of a corner street in a gated community.
 
Phil didn't like gated communities.
 
But he had bought the house at a fairly good price and the neighborhood had
everything a neighborhood is supposed to have, even a noisy flirtatious neighbor.
 
In his case, the neighbor was in her early
fifties and seemed to enjoy spending more time with her black cat than her
husband.
 
When Jeremy pulled his rented
SUV into Phil's driveway that evening, Phil was outside chatting with his
neighbor about the neighbor's preference for cats over dogs.

“It's about
time,” Phil said to Jeremy, after Jeremy parked the car.

“Miami
traffic, you know,” Jeremy replied.
“Hi Pamela.
How
have you been?”
 
Jeremy knew Phil's
neighbor always tried to find an excuse to come talk to Phil when Phil was
outside tending to his yard.

“Hi Jeremy,
you look well,” the neighbor replied. “Anyway I've got to go.
 
See you later Phil.”

“Bye,” Phil
said, and turning to Jeremy, “Pam is right.
 
You look well.”

“I see that
your ankle is looking better,” Jeremy simply said, pointing to the boot on
Phil's leg.

“I have a
ways to go. But overall it's OK.”

Jeremy then
picked up his carry-on from the back of the car and said, "let's go in.”

Phil's house had one guest bedroom downstairs. On the second floor, there was
the master bedroom, a bedroom converted into an office and another guest
bedroom.
 
Since the accident, Phil had
been sleeping in the guest bedroom downstairs and Jeremy carried his luggage to
the second floor guest bedroom.

When Jeremy
came back down, Phil was in front of the bar by the kitchen, fixing himself and
Jeremy drinks. The house was very spacious, with a private dining room situated
between the living room and the kitchen.
 
The swimming pool could be seen through the French doors that opened
from the dining room to the outside patio. At the other end of the dining room,
near the kitchen, was the bar.

“Scotch?”
Phil asked.

“Thanks,
Phil. This traffic drains you. I need one,” Jeremy answered.

“I have a
surprise for you, Jeremy.
 
You and I have
been invited for dinner tomorrow evening at Isabel's place,” Phil said.

“Is her
fiancé going to be there too?” Jeremy said, before emitting a laugh. “Relax
Phil,
I will be on my best behavior. Besides, I really want
to meet her.”

“You'll
like her. She is exceptional.
 
I don't
think I could ever endure what she has endured as a result of the accident.”

“Strong
woman, I like that,” Jeremy said. “What is she going to do with her fiancé?”

“Give her
time. She loves me and I know she will do what's right.”

“Remember,
Phil, what's right for you may not be
what's
right for
her,” Jeremy added. “What's she making for dinner?”

“Actually,
I think the sister is cooking,” Phil said.

“You mean
the sister is going to be there too? I hope for your sake, the sister is not
friends with the fiancé.”

“I don't
know, but I trust Isabel's judgment,” Phil simply said. “How is Michelle?”

“She's
fine. By the way, I wanted to talk to you about something.”

“What is it?”

“I
overheard Michelle talk to Stacy about you,” Jeremy said.

“About
what?”

“I don't
know. Apparently, Stacy is planning on coming to Miami.”

“Actually,
I've not seen her, but she’s already here.”

“Just be
careful. Sooner or later, she will come to look for you,” Jeremy warned him.

“I know.”

“Michelle
thinks she still wants you and will do anything to get you back,” Jeremy said.

“I doubt
it.
 
She is a celebrity now and has many
men who want to be with her.”

“All I am saying
is for you to be on your guard, when she
comes
calling.”

“I will,”
Phil said, making a mental note to talk to Myra about what she and
Stacy had been doing.
 
With a new woman
in his life, he didn't want complications.

##

At the same
time Phil was talking to Jeremy, Isabel was debating what to tell Rebecca about
Phil.
 
Isabel knew that Rebecca liked
Richard, but Isabel didn't have a choice but to talk to her about Phil.
Sooner or later, Rebecca would have to meet Phil, and tomorrow was as a good
day as any. Her cell phone rang and it was Lucy.

“Hi,
Lucy.”

“Hi,
Isabel.
 
Where is Rebecca?” Lucy asked.

“She’s in
her room. Why?”

“I saw her
today at the supermarket.
 
She told me
that she wasn't feeling well, but she looked like she was pregnant.”

“She is.”

“You're
kidding me.
 
When did you find out?”

“We found
out early this week and Tia Marcia and I are meeting with Mark's parents to
discuss this.”

“Do they
know about the baby?” Lucy asked.

“I don't
think so.”

“What are
you going to discuss?” Lucy asked.

“Finances,
raising the baby.
Tia Marcia will help me handle it,” Isabel answered.

“Why didn't
you tell me?”

“What?”

“That she
was pregnant, instead of me guessing for myself?”

“I just
found out,” Isabel said.

“I’m sorry
about that.
 
You didn't need that right
now.”

“Tell me
about it,” Isabel said.

“By the
way, how is your fling going?”

“It's not a
fling,” Isabel protested.

“OK.
 
Don't be so defensive. I am just playing with
you.
   
How is it going?”

“Fine.
Phil and his best friend are coming to have
dinner with us tomorrow evening.”

“His best
friend is coming and you didn't invite your best friend?”

“It wasn't
like that. His friend wanted to meet me and I wanted Phil and Rebecca to meet.”
 

“Did you
tell Rebecca about him yet?”

“I was
going to tell her when you called.”

“Well, I'll
let you go. At what time is the dinner tomorrow?”

“6:30 pm.
Why?”

“Like his
best friend wants to meet you, as your best friend, I want to meet him
too.
 
I forgive you for not inviting me.”

“I’m sorry.
I was not thinking along those lines,” Isabel said, apologetically.

“Don't
worry, Isabel. I'll be there for the dinner too and on time, unlike some people
I know.”

“Wait a
minute,” Isabel protested. But Lucy had already hung up. What Isabel loved
about Lucy was that Lucy was very unconventional.
 
She marched to the beat of her own drum. But
sometimes, like right now, Lucy's unpredictability drove her crazy.
 

##

“Rebecca,
are you there?” Isabel asked, knocking on Rebecca's bedroom door.

“Come in.”
Rebecca was sitting on her bed watching a DVD when Isabel entered.

“How are
you feeling?”

“Not good,
lately,” Rebecca answered. “I think my belly is starting to show.”

“Do you
want me to get you something, like a cup of tea?” Isabel asked.

“No,”
Rebecca answered. “I slept and feel a little better now.”

“Good. I
wanted to talk to you.
 
We are having
guests tomorrow evening,” Isabel said.

“Who is
coming?”

“I met
someone at the Center.
 
I invited him and
his friend to have dinner at 6:30 tomorrow evening.”

Rebecca looked horrified.
“You're dating one of Tia Marcia's patients, while Richard is away?”

“It's not
like that.
 
His name is Phil.
 
I just wanted him to meet you,” Isabel said.

“What do
you want me to say?
 
You are now doing
what I would never believe someone like you would do.
 
You're betraying Richard's trust for someone
you just met,” Rebecca said.

Isabel was
offended and hurt, but didn't show it. “All I'm asking is for you to be there
and to meet him.
 
You don't have to like
him but I hope you do.”

“In the
meantime, what are you going to tell Richard? He has been leaving messages for
you, you know?” Rebecca said.

“I'll deal
with the situation when Richard gets back,” Isabel said. “Rebecca, I am in love
with Phil and I hope you understand that.”

“Isabel,”
Rebecca said, “you know how much I love you.
 
I am saying this for your own good.
 
You are making a big mistake.
 
Richard has not done anything to you and has always treated us well.”

“This is
not about Richard, Rebecca.
  
All I am
asking is for you to be nice to them when they come here tomorrow,” Isabel
said.

“I'll be
nice to them.
 
I just think what you're
doing is wrong,” she argued.

“Thanks,” Isabel
said as she exited Rebecca's room. The discussion was over.
 
She wasn't asking Rebecca's permission, just
her help for tomorrow evening.

Rebecca's
strong reaction surprised Isabel.
 
She
expected her to voice her disapproval with the whole situation. Even Isabel
herself disapproved of her own situation.
 
But Isabel didn't expect her to argue so vehemently before giving Phil a
chance. Now she felt bad for bringing Rebecca into this.

She was
going to have dinner with the man that she loved, with a sister who
disapproved, while her fiancé was away.
 
What a mess she had created,
she
thought.